Published: Wednesday, April 24, 2013 at 10:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, April 23, 2013 at 1:30 p.m.

One in four restaurants close within a year, according to the Small Business Administration. That number rises to 60 percent within three to five years.

So when Lonnie Crochet and Marie Cox decided to open Bayou Delight Restaurant 32 years ago they couldn't imagine surviving two decades of struggle.

“The first 20 years were rough,” the 62-year-old Crochet said. “We opened in the ‘80s, and that's when the oilfields shut down and really put a hurt on us. I'm grateful the residents of Bayou Black, Gibson and the surrounding areas helped support us and kept us going.”

What also allowed the restaurant to gain traction was joining forces with “Alligator” Annie Miller. Busloads of tourists would eat at Bayou Delight after taking her swamp and marsh tours.

“We started to grow more through the Louisiana tourist trade,” he said. “Eventually, we had to make our dining room bigger to service all the people.”

With 16 employees, including three cooks that help Crochet prepare the Cajun Creole dishes, Bayou Delight has become a local and tourist favorite.

Seafood items such as the seafood platters, stuffed crabs and grilled oysters are always popular, but the best-selling item is the fried chicken. Although Crochet wouldn't put a number to it, he said Bayou Delight fries and sells hundreds of pieces every day.

“The secret to great fried chicken is our unique style of herbs and spices,” he said. “We put a Cajun spin on everything we make; even something you wouldn't think of as Cajun.”

Bayou Delight's signature dish is New Orleans-style crab cakes served with its exclusive Acadiana sauce.

The restaurant offers daily plate lunches, the most popular of which is the white beans and rice and fried catfish on Thursdays. For dessert, a traditional Cajun-style bread pudding with run sauce is a must.

“We have people that come from New Orleans to eat this bread pudding,” Crochet said. “They said they won't eat it anywhere but here.”

Once a month, Bayou Delight has a steak and shrimp night. It is held on the Wednesday that falls between the 13th and 19th of the month. Customers get a 12-ounce black angus rib eye served with six grilled shrimp, vegetables, roasted potatoes and garlic bread for $19.99. The idea for the special came on a whim.

“We just decided to do it, offer people something different, other than seafood and fried stuff,” Crochet said. “We get a nice crowd. We sell 40 to 50 steaks on steak night.”

With its family-friendly tone and affordable prices, Bayou Delight has built a loyal customer base. Longtime patron Meryl Portier, 83, dines at the restaurant almost every day, even when she isn't feeling well.

“I like a slew of things, but especially the chicken and sausage gumbo,” she said. “I also enjoy the company. I gather here with three or four friends, and after we eat, we just sit and talk.”

“Even when Mrs. Meryl was sick a couple of years ago, we brought her food to her house,” Crochet added.

Kristy Lyllik of Houma and Edwina Courtneaux of Dulac were absent from Bayou Delight for a while, but still knew where to get their seafood fix.

“You can trust that they have local seafood, and everything is going to be fresh.” said Courtneaux, while dining on a crab burger. “I would come here more often if I lived closer.”

“It's very important to me to support local businesses, and I've heard nothing but positives about this place,” added Lyllik, while eating shrimp pasta Acadiana.

A Houma native, Crochet got his passion for food from his father, Harold, a cook for Texaco for 37 years, and mother, Bessie.

He explained that the menu is a combination of handed-down family recipes, recipes from his wife, Pasty, and Nosworthy's interest in Southern cooking.

To give Bayou Delight even more authentic south Louisiana ambiance, Cajun bands play every Friday and Saturday night. They also have Cajun dancers perform on weekends, which add to the distinctive and bonding atmosphere.

“If you come here on a Friday night, you see people moving around from table to table talking all the time,” Crochet said. “We have people from Thibodaux and the Vacherie area, Morgan City, Napoleonville for the Cajun music and dancing.”

Traditional Creole cooking will always be at the root of Bayou Delight, but Crochet isn't afraid to tinker with the recipe, not even his sacred Acadiana sauce.

“I experiment a lot on my plate lunches,” he said. “We like to grow and keep up with the times. We're always looking for new recipes to add to our menu, but we always stay with the theme of Cajun cuisine.”

Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.